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Editorial Reviews

Review

“Written with humor and anger, despair and awe…This is an important book.” –Moritz Thomsen, author of The Farm on the River of Emeralds

From the Back Cover

Lovers of fine travel and adventure writing will savor Mike Tidwell’s richly acclaimed narrative of his days as a Peace Corps volunteer. His task was to help people in the remote corners of Zaire raise tilapia in ponds they would dig themselves, with muscle power alone. This book—with a new introduction by the author—is a masterful account of culture clash, generosity of spirit, and true grit. It is a must-read for anyone with aspirations to “change the world.”

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

I read this book for a world cultures class, and surprisingly really enjoyed it. For me it started off pretty slow, but once I got a little deeper in, it was a quick and easy read. Tidwell tells his story of his career struggles, and how he eventually came to be in the peace corps. Throughout the book Tidwell learns a lot of history and makes a lot of characteristic changes and falls in love with the Kalambayi people. Reading about Tidwell's experience for me was really an eye opener, I find the peace corps and the work they do really intriguing and I think memoirs are always really interesting and his is a great one. The book was really easy for me to relate to in different ways than I would have expected. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys learning about other cultures and about self discovery.

I love the main theme of the novel... culture clash and the desire to save the world. It is this very concept - "saving the world" - that makes the Peace Corps such a fascinating cultural phenomenon. The editorial reviews for this novel speak volumes... well done!

For another good example of the Peace Corps - saving the world theme (albeit the darker side), check out "The Soft Exile" by Eric Kiefer The Soft Exile

A superb, entertaining, educational, book written by somebody who "gets it." Tidwell sets out with the best of intentions to improve the quality of life in backwater Congo but is thwarted time and again by cultural issues.